Secret training weapon

7-15-08: Here 3 of our B+ swimmers, Shea, Isaac, and Melissa, model one of Coach Vicky's secret training weapons: the high-drag flowered swim cap. It creates tremendous drag in the water, increasing the intensity of the workout. When they take those off and swim with their normal swim caps, you feel like a watermelon seed shooting out from between your fingers! I'm sure we don't pay our coaches enough for coming up with such innovative swimming aids to make our kids the fastest in the pool!

Last Ditch Meet in Hemet

7-14-08: It was HOT this weekend in Hemet...so what else is new? But it was also the Last Ditch...meaning the last meet to make any JO times for JO's in Aug. Some did it, like Mei, while others came close. But all did their best and there will be other meets to come! Enjoy the slide show:







Love Johnny's cap!

Saw lots of examples of RST Good Sportsmanship there--here are a few I was able to capture. Great job, ya'll!



After this meet, I realized that this is probably the last meet that I will be able to shoot the Cunnan kids, since their last meet with RST will be at JO's (Summer just aged up to 11/12 on July 3 and missed her 100m fly JO time by less than a second, so we're not going to JO's this summer.). After JO's, the Cunnan family will be moving up to northern Cal where their dad is now working. We'll miss them all and wish them the best in their new home. We've had a lot of memories with the Cunnans and Summer has enjoyed being teammates with them. I've enjoyed racing Calvin as well--watch for some special video footage of one of our last races together!

First RST at Trials: Austin in 200 fly!

6-30-08: Tomorrow, July 1, the first of 4 RST swimmers, Austin Brown, will be swimming at the Olympic trials in the 200 fly. We wish him will! Check him out in Heat 2, lane 4. Go Austin! Hope you're enjoying watching the rest of the trials. Exciting stuff! (If you can't watch it on TV, you can catch all the action on video at NBC's website.)

RST 4 in Press Enterprise!

6-28-08: Check out the article on RST's 4 teens heading to the Olympic trials this weekend.

Krug Press Enterprise swimmer of year

6-26-08: Karl Krug, Yucaipa High School senior and Redlands Swim Team swimmer, rec'd this honor for a second straight year. Read all about it at the PE's website. Congrats Karl!

Olympic trials send-off!

6-25-08: The last time RST sent someone to the Olympic trials was when Coach Vicky West was a club swimmer. Now, history repeats itself, and what's even more amazing is that we're sending FOUR HIGHSCHOOL boys to the Olympic Trials...something that is very rarely, if ever, done.

So to honor these 4 guys, their coaches, and parents, we had a special send-off, signing, and ice cream social as they prepare to leave for Omaha.

The swimmers are Austin Brown (200-meter butterfly), Tyler Harp (100-meter freestyle) and Joey Hale (50 free) - all of Redlands High School - and Karl Krug (50 free) of Yucaipa High School. (Source: John Murphy's blog, "Prep Dog", on the The Sun's website)

Good luck to these 4 guys!

Coach Vicky waves as she is recognized as our club's previous multiple Olympic trials swimmer.














Signing the 4 guys' banners, wishing them well!
President Neal talks about this historic occasion to the team.
Their coach, Head Coach Chuck, talks about the sacrifices and hard work that these guys, and their parents, have made to get where they are at.

Kim Pepper gives them going away gift bags as they begin their journey to Omaha.

Here are a few more candids from the ice cream social and send-off.

Staying COOL at last day of AA meet

6-21-08: Sun was the last day of the 4-day AA meet in Irvine and it was a scorcher! Some families were there ALL 4 days--now those are diehard swimmers and parents!

Here are just a few shots from Sunday--I actually spent that afternoon shooting mostly video for a change, doing interviews, etc. You'll be seeing those again someday!

Congrats to all the swimmers--I heard that it was a "hot" meet for most of them...and I'm not talking temperature-wise, either!

Melissa demonstrates how to keep cool--with a swim cap full of water and ice!

Calvin (on the ladder) thinks to himself, "What a bunch of crazy girls!" Are they practicing for the first RST Synchronized Swimming Team?

One of 3 sites where RST parents had enjoyed their sauna, fully clothed.

It was so hot that even the homeless took shelter nearby...
...oh wait, that isn't a homeless family, that is the Cunan family! My bad....